Tinley Indie Pet Store Owner Fights 'Tooth And Nail' To Stay Open

TINLEY PARK, IL — Amanda Daly knows it was time to be honest with herself, and her supporters. Her beloved pet store in downtown Tinley Park might not make it—unless something changes, and fast.

Daly, who owns The Barketplace at 17258 Oak Park Ave., says after a string of blows to the business in the last year, she's staring down the possibility that she might have to close its doors. In a last-ditch effort to stir support, she turned to social media this week.

"This is getting harder every day," Daly wrote on the business' Facebook page. "People aren't out shopping the way they were, we've taken some hard hits, and costs keep rising. ... Every hit we take puts us further and further behind. I don't know how much more we can keep digging ourselves back from. I think this is our last leg."

It's a heartbreaking realization for the Lockport resident, whose shop is a longtime dream of hers that came to fruition. She's hoping her public plea will breathe much-needed new life into the store.

"We’ve been digging ourselves out with a spoon for months," she said.

"I recognize I’ve built such an incredible community around me that before I throw in the towel, I can be transparent with the community … Maybe our 'spoon' can get a little bigger—maybe we can get a shovel—and dig a little faster.

"The next step was to tell my community what was going on, and be as honest and transparent as I can."

Daly has been in the pet industry for nearly 20 years, starting as a teen working on a horse farm on her summer breaks.

"Since I was 16, it's all I've done," she said. "Working with animals was always the plan, always what I wanted to do."

With her beginnings in smaller pet stores, Daly saw the impact of service and connection first-hand early in her career. She recalls carrying bags of dog food to customers' cars, delivering purchases to doorsteps.

"I was very lucky I got my start in this industry in independent pet stores," she said. "That started my baseline of what I expect, and what I think people deserve in this industry.

"When you get to know people’s pets, you get to know a unique part of their family. When you’re a piece of that for someone, it’s important that you bring the whole experience. You build a community."

A Lockport resident, Daly sought to bring a shop like the one she remembers so fondly from her early career to the south suburbs. After an initial location in Lockport did not pan out, she found the space on Oak Park Avenue in downtown Tinley Park. It had big draws that would bring organic foot traffic—parades, farmers market, and the well-known Jimmy Buffett-inspired Block Party. She locked in.

"We found our home," she said. "We started to built, we built this incredible community around ourselves."

The store opened in 2021, pushed from earlier due to pandemic-related woes.

"The first year and a half went as well as a new business can," she said. "We were growing, we were building."

Several setbacks last fall left her reeling. First, the business' social media was hacked. Gone were the strong followings she'd built on Facebook and Instagram, where she regularly shared specials, product spotlights, and other store news. Social media was a vital connection to her customers—one she realizes she greatly undervalued at the time.

"When we got hacked, that hit us really hard," Daly said. "I couldn’t get those back. You’d be surprised at how big a dip I saw in business in the following weeks. You don't realize how big your social media impacted your day to day, until you lose it."

In November, the unit's furnace blew, then the hot water heater went a short time later. Exhausted and defeated, she coined the seemingly nonstop setbacks her "Crises of the Week."

Most recently, traffic blocks during the Village's Block Party stopped customers from being able to reach her store—an issue about which she says the Village has acknowledged and apologetic.

But the damage has been done and is noticeable. With pet owners needing essentials such as the pet food she orders—some specifically for customers—they told her they'd have to turn elsewhere. She fears those are customers she won't be able to get back.

"We still haven't bounced back from it," she said.

She finds herself unable to stock the shelves due to the drop in revenue.

"We need support," Daly wrote on Facebook. "We know our shelves aren't full the way we would like. We're frustrated, too. We're doing our best. If you help us catch up, we'll get them full again. We hope to remain your dogs' favorite store."

On a personal level, an additional hit to finances—and her heart—came with the sudden death of one of her own pets, preceded by a number of vet bills incurred trying to save her pet's life.

"Pet loss is hard, it's emotional," she said. "This one was really expensive, and it hit us hard."

Still now, she turns her attention to finding a way to make her beloved small business work.

Daly prides herself on curating high-quality products. She stocks specific brands such as Fromm's, a family owned-and-operated pet food company based in Wisconsin, and Zignature, a meat-first, limited-ingredient food line. Also offered is Stella & Chewy's, built around raw and other natural pet food diet options.

"It (the pet industry) is supposed to be about the care of these family members," she said. "I focus on my big rule," she said. "If I won’t give it to my dogs, I’m not going to sell it to you."

She stocks natural chews and treats, including a lot of single-ingredient or limited-ingredient treats for dogs with sensitivities. She sells enrichment toys—things that keep dogs moving, active, and stimulated.

She's also giving back to the community that she's been asking to sustain the shop.

"We host a lot of events," she said. "We host adoption events on a regular basis."

She holds monthly book clubs featuring dog-themed books, and willingly donates items when charities ask for support. They're currently fostering a litter of kitten from NAWS. The kittens born from a feral mother, she hosts kitten socials, inviting customers to help socialize the little ones. She also hosts markets, inviting in vendors without their own brick-and-mortar space to promote and sell their products.

Daly also joined the Village's Marketing Commission, which works collaboratively to support town activities and events, tourism initiatives and brand, and community involvement and engagement strategies.

"I think it’s really important as a business owner that I support the community I’m asking to support me," she said.

She needs the support now more than ever, if people want to see the store survive.

"I love my place in this community," she said. "The relationships I've built, the partnerships I've formed, the friends I've made. I hold the charities, rescues, and organizations we've donated to or helped support in one way or another so close to my heart.

"The Barketplace has been my dream for as long as I can remember. I'm fighting tooth and nail to hold on, I just want to be honest, my grip is slipping."

The Barketplace is located at 17258 Oak Park Ave. Hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, Saturdays 1 to 6 p.m., and Sundays 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. They can be reached at (708) 963-3488.

Find them on Facebook for cute pet pics, sales special announcements, events info, and more.